Queen of Hearts
by nyislandersgirl
Summary: When it comes to the "suit" of playing cards, there are four to consider: spades, diamonds, clubs, and hearts. Aside from the suit of the cards, there is a rank. Once again, four, if one doesn't count the numbers: Ace, King, Queen, and Jack. Traditionally, the Queen is ranked behind only one other card. In Ash's mind, the Queen ruled above all others. Oneshot. Implied Pokeshippin


**Most Pokeshippers are aware of the scene in the "Spurt" opening that features Misty and Ash's mother on a Queen of Hearts card, which seems to imply that they are the two most important women in Ash's life. Well, I've always found that to be completely and undeniably ADORABLE, so I created a one shot for it :)**

**Enjoy!**

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**Queen of Hearts**

When it comes to the "suit" of playing cards, there are four to consider: spades, diamonds, clubs, and hearts. Aside from the suit of the cards, there is a rank. Once again, four, if one doesn't count the numbers: Ace, King, Queen, and Jack. Traditionally, the Queen is ranked behind only one other card: the King.

In Ash's mind, the Queen ruled above all others.

Not in the world of playing cards, of course. Ash couldn't understand the damned game if one held a class on it, and that wasn't even taking into account that Ash more than likely wouldn't pay _attention_ to said class.

Because, if it didn't have to do with Pokémon, chances are he wouldn't care enough to put his mind to it.

But, back to Ash's opinion on Queens.

He had few family, and many friends. Ash loved them all dearly. He firmly believed that without them all, he wouldn't be the person he had become and continued to develop into. Friends and family were an important thing to Ash.

There was Brock, who served as Ash's "big brother" figure. He had always been so caring of Ash, teaching him worldly lessons (about both Pokémon and life) and guiding him through whatever problems the young trainer came across in his travels.

Tracey could also be viewed as an older brother to Ash, but he tended to be more free spirited than Brock. He could tell Ash absolutely anything about Pokémon. The Professor's assistant knew so much about the creatures from all his years spent as a hard working Pokémon watcher.

May, Max, and Dawn were all like the younger siblings Ash never had. He had mentored them all, helping May and Dawn to learn the ins and outs of Pokémon and leading them to become well acclimated, and very talented, coordinators. He had even assisted Max, who was too young yet to be a Pokémon trainer but, after meeting Ash, aspirated more than ever to become the best he could and eventually take over his father's job as gym leader.

Iris, while more teasing than most of his friends, meant a lot to Ash as well. She was fun and carefree, quite a bit like Ash himself. He found it easy to get along with her, even when she would get annoyed and call him a kid.

Cilan too had a big brother vibe to him, although by the time Ash had met up with the connoisseur, he was older and quite worldly. He didn't need as much advice as he had with Brock. So instead, Cilan made a very good influence of sorts, introducing Ash to new experiences he might have never tried otherwise.

Yes, Ash considered everyone he met to be influential to his life and development. Even people he had only met once, like Melody, or a few sparse times, like Mewtwo. Ash was even grateful for the often callous, or at least uncaring, personalities of Paul and Trip. Because they had all helped him to grow and become his own person.

And while Ash held all of his acquaintances in high regard, there were two specific relationships he treasured above all else. They meant the world to him, never failed to make him smile, and always brought him the most joy imaginable.

In a sense, they were his Queens.

His mother, Delia, was so kind and loving. She always had been, since Ash could ever remember. He would love his mother no matter what, but taking into consideration that she had been the only one there to raise him as a child, and give him the love and protection that was typically provided by two parents, Ash had the utmost love and respect for the woman. She had had him so young, and all Ash ever feared was that he had ruined his mother's life and destroyed her dreams. But it never seemed so. She had given up absolutely everything for him, and seemed completely happy to have done it. Ash rarely ever saw her in a bad mood. She was such a friendly person, always greeting the neighbors and people in town. Even though Ash had been a fairly mischievous child, he didn't have much memory of his mother yelling at him. Scolding was hardly even in his mindset. She had loved and cared for him too much, and never wanted to go through with roughly punishing the boy.

Ash would admit he was a bit of a Mama's Boy. Not one of those creepy obsessed ones who would never move away from home. Obviously that wasn't the case, since Ash hadn't been living steadily at home since he was 10 years old. But if someone were to confront him about his relationship with his mother, Ash wouldn't be afraid to confess how much he loved and respected her. He wasn't ashamed at all. Without his mother, Ash wasn't sure what kind of a person he would be, and if his childhood would have been as safe, happy, or memorable.

Along with his mother, there was the next female in Ash's life who meant everything to him, who was so dominant of the young man's heart he could hardly believe that such a girl could take such a strong hold.

Misty.

The fiery haired, emerald green eyed, milky skinned, toned and slender gym leader of Cerulean City. She was stunningly beautiful, a girl who had started off gawky and somewhat awkward, and grown into an absolutely breathtaking young woman. She had a personality and an attitude as blazing as her hair, although she had settled down considerably over the years. Ash pinpointed it on raising Togepi, which he actually found to be a very sweet aspect of the girl. It had instilled in her maternal instincts, which she utilized much more often than Ash could have ever imagined.

She was athletic, very strong despite her slender appearance. Ash knew that beneath that soft, glowing skin were heavily trained muscles from all of the swimming that Misty took part in. It was most obvious in her legs: no longer the long, seemingly breakable sticks they had been when she was just a girl. They were now toned and unbelievably powerful, the kind of legs that any girl would be jealous of. Ash couldn't even be sure of just how strong her legs actually _were. _But he certainly didn't want to find out.

And she was _so _competitive! Ash loved that aspect of the girl. He couldn't be happy with someone who was complacent, accepting of defeat and not willing to try her hardest. Misty had determination that was like no other. She could care less if her hair or nails or clothes were destroyed in the process of trying to capture or train a rogue Pokémon. Misty would not stop until she had achieved what she so desired, and to Ash, there was nothing better. Determination and cutthroat spirit was a trait that Ash really valued in a person, perhaps because it reminded him so much of himself.

What Ash loved the most about Misty was that, no matter where in the world he went to try and achieve his dream, Misty never forgot about him. She would call him all the time, and while Ash was often guilty of not being the one to send the call first, Misty didn't mind. It was clear that she just enjoyed talking to him, and didn't need him to make the first move. Ash didn't know if that was going to count for _everything, _but it allowed him to rest easy in knowing that it still brought Misty a degree of happiness to be in contact with him.

There were still, of course, differences between the two, however.

While Ash was energetic and wild, Misty tended to be calm and level headed. She liked to think, while Ash preferred to act. Misty got angry very easily, and for Ash, it took an awful lot to rile up the future Pokémon Master.

But…opposites attract.

Besides, Ash knew that Misty was the perfect choice for a best friend. She and his mother got along _perfectly. _And since they were the most important people in his life, Ash considered that to be the ultimate sign of success. Misty would even visit his mother while he was away to keep her company. It made Ash happy to know that someone else cared about his mother just as deeply as he did.

Of course, he never _did _understand why the two giggled so much when he became the topic of conversation, but Ash wasn't about to question it. It was probably just a girl thing, after all.

But he was happy when his mother hugged him. He was happy when Misty hugged him. He didn't mind getting kisses from his mother, but he'd never received or given any kisses to or from Misty…maybe he'd like those too.

They both meant the world to him. Ash didn't know what he would ever do without either of them. They did, after all, rule his heart.

Just like a pair of Queens.

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